Contributing organization(s): Earth Policy Institute. Nearly four weeks after a 9.0-magnitute earthquake and tsunami devastated northeastern Japan, emergency personnel are still struggling to stabilize the disabled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. Beyond the immediate need to minimize further radioactive leakage and protect public health, the government is beginning to reconsider its long-term plans for nuclear power expansion. International media coverage has typically assumed that Japan…

The state of Arkansas has an incredibly nuanced and complex civil rights history, and even as far back as 1868 the state had a civil rights law on the books. This rather intriguing and broad collection from the University of Arkansas chronicles the history of civil rights in the state through documents, cartoons, photographs, and other key items. The site addresses the internment of Japanese Americans in the state during World War II, the proposed adoption of the Equal Rights Amendment, and the treatment of African Americans. The materials are divided into topics that include the aforementioned subjects, along with “Women’s Rights” and “NAACP, Freedom Riders, and SNCC”…

Remember Me: Displaced Children of the Holocaust
The United States Holocaust Museum (USHM) has worked on a number of important projects, and this might be one of their most moving. Working with the archives of the World Jewish Congress (WJC), they have digitized approximately 1100 photographs of children who were displaced or orphaned as a result of the persecution carried out by the Nazis and their collaborators. The intent of this project is “to identify these children, piece together information about their wartime and postwar experiences, and facilitate renewed connections among these young survivors, their families, and other individuals who were involved in their care during and after the war.”

Texas Public Interest Research Group
A “PIRG” is a public interest research group, and there is one in every state and Washington D.C. The Texas PIRG’s mission statement on its website states that it “deliver[s] persistent, result-oriented public interest activism that protects consumers, encourages a fair, sustainable economy, and fosters responsive, democratic government.” Visitors can find the current, and archived, issues of the quarterly newsletter that TexPIRG puts out, in the “Newsletters” link. The issues highlight and explain the successes and setbacks TexPIRG has experienced, including their work on faster food safety recalls, strong insurance exchanges, and providing government funds for a high-speed rail line between the Dallas-Ft. Worth area and Oklahoma City. Under the “Issues” menu, visitors can choose from ten issues to learn about, including “safe energy”, “affordable higher education”, and “elections and government reform”…